Tuesday 16 March 2010

Meeting Kayla

Has anyone ever had one of those ‘wow’ moments? A moment where an idea for a novel flashes through your mind? I had one tonight. Granted, I may have been a bit stoned… okay, very stoned, but on my way home from a friend’s house I had this idea just hit me out of no where. I’d completed the whole plot in my head by the time I got home, so I decided to write everything down in a word document. Within the last hour, I’ve written 3,000 words of plot, and I now have the whole thing ready for starting.

It’s going to be loosely based on an experience I went through in my younger teenage years, which means the emotions are going to hit close to home on this one. I just hope I can do it justice.

It’s going to be full of sex, drugs, and a very slutty girl in a school uniform… did I mention that one of those sex scenes is going to be between two girls?

*wipes mouth*

And thus, meeting Kayla was born.

Until next time,

Nia

Saturday 6 March 2010

How I Outline

Since I’m starting a new novel from scratch today, I decided it would be a good idea to write a post about how I outline.

First Things First

Usually I’ll get an idea from a picture, a piece of music, a conversation, a newspaper article, or even a dream. I’ll keep all these different ideas stored in a notebook and start piecing things together. For example, with Mirror Room I’m using a subplot that I came up with for a different novel I never started, and I’m using a character that popped into my head months ago but never wrote about.

Then…

I’ll open a word document, put on some music, and let any idea flow from my fingers -- even if it makes no sense. For example, this is what a part of my plan looks like at the moment:

Pilot study of the trials -- Population becoming too great so a new coming of age. Ruled by an organisation.

Drowning

A tattoo which binds them all together.

A uniform

Eyes start bleeding

Have medical kits

Have to get into a hole to stop self from being burned alive -- radioactive. Pulls the girl out by the leg and takes.


Yes, that does all make sense to me.

Next…

I’ll actually start creating a plot and characters. At this point I’ll come up with names and give them backgrounds.

Chapters

Then I’ll start thinking about chapters. I’ll outline each one, but I know I’ll probably stray from it a bit, so I give myself enough leeway to do that.

And finally, after all that, I'll begin writing. I'm a real plot whore. I can't just write without knowing where the story is going.

Until next time,

Nia
x

How I Outline

Since I’m starting a new novel from scratch today, I decided it would be a good idea to write a post about how I outline.

First Things First

Usually I’ll get an idea from a picture, a piece of music, a conversation, a newspaper article, or even a dream. I’ll keep all these different ideas stored in a notebook and start piecing things together. For example, with Mirror Room I’m using a subplot that I came up with for a different novel I never started, and I’m using a character that popped into my head months ago but never wrote about.

Then…

I’ll open a word document, put on some music, and let any idea flow from my fingers -- even if it makes no sense. For example, this is what a part of my plan looks like at the moment:

Pilot study of the trials -- Population becoming too great so a new coming of age. Ruled by an organisation.

Drowning

A tattoo which binds them all together.

A uniform

Eyes start bleeding

Have medical kits

Have to get into a hole to stop self from being burned alive -- radioactive. Pulls the girl out by the leg and takes.

Yes, that does all make sense to me.

Next…

I’ll actually start creating a plot and characters. At this point I’ll come up with names and give them backgrounds.

Chapters

Then I’ll start thinking about chapters. I’ll outline each one, but I know I’ll probably stray from it a bit, so I give myself enough leeway to do that.

And finally, after all that, I'll begin writing. I'm a real plot whore. I can't just write without knowing where the story is going.

Until next time,

Nia
x

I Had a Dream

I’ve never really had ideas come to me within a dream before. Hell, it’s hard enough creating ideas when I’m awake. But this dream was so vivid, and it just grabbed me.

I was standing in a room with TV sets all over the ceiling, walls and floor. And within this dream I was holding a hatchet. Both the hatchet and I were dripping with blood, and I was about to pass through onto the next round of trials.

Thus, Mirror Room was born. I’m really excited about this one. I’ve never written anything like it before, and I’ve never before attempted writing something which is going to be so long. So far it’s outlined to be 80 - 90K words. This is kinda scary. No. This is VERY scary. What if I can’t do it? What if I waste months and months writing and editing something that’s crap?

Oh, well. I won’t know until I try… I don’t even know what genre Mirror Room is. Fantasy? Urban Fantasy? Dystopian? (Is that a genre? XD)

Either way, I can’t really start this until I’ve finished my English coursework for college. Damn it, I only have until Friday to get it finished and handed in otherwise I fail my A-Level -- I don’t want that.

I’m going to outline each chapter and hopefully have the first draft completed in one or two months. I’ll still be finishing Camp Queen, but it will be more of a side project until the first draft for Mirror Room is done.

Until next time,

Nia
x

Thursday 4 March 2010

Teaser Thursday

Since my Teaser Tuesday is late, I’ll do a Teaser Thursday!

Warning: This is a first draft and may not even make it past the first round of edits, so don’t be too critical.

From Camp Queen

I dumped my last bag in the back of my red Chevrolet Aveo and slammed the car boot’s door shut. It was typical that I was leaving on the same day Trevor was having a party at his parents’ beach house. I sighed, thinking about all the drink and chicks I was missing out on. The little demon Adam on my shoulder was beginning to think that grassing on Trevor and John wasn’t such a bad thing. At least I’d have had them to keep me company at this damn camp. I’d pick beer and babes over little, snotty kids any day.

“Is that everything?” Susie asked, sucking on the straw in her slushy. The frozen cherry liquid moved up the clear plastic and entered her mouth.

I leaned on my car and stuff my hands in my pant’s pocket to pull the keys out. “Yeah, that’s everything.”

She nodded, passing the slushy to Sam. I wasn’t lying when I said that boy was at our house most the time. I didn’t think he’d even gone home since school finished for summer vacation two days ago.

“Now, we’ve been through the rules, right?” I asked, giving a sceptical look to the both of them.

The two nodded in unison and recited the rules which I’d stuck to the fridge with a magnet. “No parties. No alcohol. No staying up all night. And no making the house a mess.”

I gave a pointed look at Sam. “And?”

He rolled eyes. “No guys around.”

“That means you, too, Susie.”

She raised a hand to her head in mock-salute. “Yes, captain buzz-kill.”

I pushed myself off the car and circled it to open the driver’s door. “I know you’re going to break every rule on that list just to spite me.” They grinned. “So I took the liberty of asking our neighbours to check up on you when you least expect it.” Their grins turned upside-down. “I knew that would please you.” I flicked a hand in a little wave. “Catch you in two weeks.”


Just a small one this week.